Fined for not using a cycle lane

A district judge who controversially cleared a speeding policeman has convicted a cyclist... for riding in the road.

Bruce Morgan caused a furore last year when he ruled that PC Mark Milton had done nothing wrong by driving at an 'eye- watering' 159mph while trying out a new high-performance squad car.

But when cyclist Daniel Cadden appeared before him last week, he threw the book at the 25-year-old software engineer for riding in the road instead of using a special path set aside for cyclists.

He convicted Mr Cadden of failing to show 'reasonable consideration' - a clause in the 1988 Road Traffic Act normally used to prosecute cyclists who terrify pedestrians by riding on the pavement - and fined him £100 with £200 costs.

Outspoken Judge Morgan is thought to be the first member of the judiciary to convict anyone of the offence of failing to use a bicycle lane.

Police with blue lights flashing and siren blaring stopped Mr Cadden as he rode home from work along West Centre Way in Telford, Shropshire. Although he was doing at least 20mph downhill towards a roundabout, he was accused of forcing following traffic to slow down.

But motoring law experts believe the judge got it wrong and that Mr Cadden should never have been prosecuted.

Former Metropolitan Police traffic chief Kevin Delaney said: "Even if there are double white lines, motorists are allowed to cross them in order to pass a cyclist. It is disturbing that this judge seems willing to accept anything the police tell him instead of exercising his own independent judgment."

Mr Cadden, from Telford, who has been riding the seven-mile route for the past 16 months, is considering an appeal.

He said he would have had to cross three lanes of traffic to reach the cycle path, which has dozens of dangerous intersections where users have to wait for traffic to pass.

"The weather was fine, visibility was good and I was no danger to other road users or to myself. There was no queue of traffic behind me and the first I knew anything was wrong was when I heard a police siren behind me."

Mary Williams, of the road safety charity Brake, said: "It seems crazy and inexplicable to punish Mr Cadden while letting off a police officer who was driving at a dangerously excessive speed - the biggest killer on our roads."

PC Milton, 38, of West Mercia Police, drove a powerful unmarked 3.2-litre Vauxhall Vectra GSI at 84mph in a 30mph zone before reaching an 'eyewatering' 159mph on the M54. But in court, Judge Morgan described him as the 'creme de la creme' of police drivers and dismissed the charges - a ruling which was later overturned by the High Court, and a retrial ordered.